Now let me clarify something, I don’t mean “Average Joe” as in you are not special(I’m sure you’re all special…). I’m more referring to availability to the average person. As you run through Tony’s Top Cigars of 2012, many of them are still very new and haven’t hit some of the far reaching markets, especially not up here in Canada. They will roll out slowly to more shops but some may never make it to local B&M’s. Most of the cigars in my list below are pretty easily available nationwide, with a couple small exceptions, and they have nothing to do with release dates. It’s obviously biased to what’s easily available to me but I think my situation will mimic a lot of our friends out there.

As Tony mentioned in his post, this list is completely home-spun, written for the enjoyment of it, and I by no means consider myself any sort of expert smoker or expert shopper. Everyone’s opinion will vary and these might not be what you expect to see. But I’d love to hear your thoughts, let’s have some fun with this one!

#10 – My Father Le Bijou 1922

I had a bit of a tough time squeezing this cigar into this list, and I have a couple reasons for that. Firstly is the price, most of the vitolas are at or over the $10 range which makes them a little too pricey for most. The savior here is that you can grab the tasty little Petit Robusto for a much fairer price. My second concern was availability, they seem to be available in a lot of stores but also sell out quickly and are slower to re-stock to due the lower yield they have. But this is a cigar I’m constantly looking for, I don’t always buy it because of the price but when I see a sale or a package deal, I’m quick to throw one of these in there. The intense espresso flavors are almost enough for me to want this cigar, but it also gives great cedar, spice and cocoa all backed by a smooth and creamy finish. It’s an all around great cigar and will always be on my shopping list.

My Father Le Bijou 1922 Toro Review
My Father Le Bijou 1922 Box Pressed Torpedo Quick Draw

#9 – Padilla La Terraza Capa Habano

Now this is a cigar I honestly stumbled into by accident. I found it on sale, read a couple decent reviews and opted to grab a whole box for a steal of a deal. And I’m really glad I did! For the price of only about $2 that you can find these, the cigar is spot on and burns very nicely. You will find some woodsy, almond and coffee flavors here, perhaps a bit of a menthol kick at the start as well. All in a nice smooth medium bodied cigar. Just make sure to get the Habano version as the general consensus is that the Maduro just doesn’t match up.

Padilla La Terraza Capa Habano Quick Draw

#8 – Maldonado Dynasty “The Mogul”

This is a name you’ve probably seen pop up on our site before. Paul, leader of the Maldonado Dynasty, has been a great supporter and friend of Casas Fumando but that doesn’t mean we take his cigars lightly. I’ve been lucky enough to smoke through a whole bunch of these cigars, including some pre-release, first release and even a bunch from a fresh batch I received a few weeks ago. Paul is constantly working to make things better and it shows in his cigars. The quality of the sticks continues to rise while the flavors continue to impress. You can expect a silky medium-full bodied cigar with lots of coffee, cocoa, dried fruit and nutmeg flavors that will keep you on your toes. The availability of these is still a bit limited so it was a tough choice for me to add to this list, but if you don’t mind getting them shipped you can definitely find a place to buy these.

Maldonado Dynasty “The Mogul” Review

#7 – Perdomo Champagne Noir

I’ve always been a pretty big fan of Perdomo, they constantly impress me with top-notch construction on all of their sticks. It’s been rare for me to run into burn issues on their cigars and all of their sticks come in at fair prices. This is a definite commitment to quality that I can appreciate. Typically, Perdomo’s don’t make many top 10 lists because they don’t tend to be in the trendy boutique sphere and also don’t do anything too crazy. They seem to stick to their roots and just keep producing good cigars. I was a fan of the 10th Anniversary Champagne and when I heard about the Champagne Noir, I jumped to try it. I was happily greeted by a delicate mixture of baking spices, cedar, espresso and roasted almonds. Not to mention this was probably one of the slowest burning cigars I have ever lit up. The standard Toro size flew past 2 hours easily, normally I burn through a toro in under 1.5 hours.

Perdomo Champagne Noir Review

#6 – La Aurora 107

It’s been quite a while since this cigar was released but I still find myself seeking them out. The flavors never cease to impress and they usually come in at a very fair price, especially if you find them on sale. There is a wide range of vitolas in this line for everyone. Every time I light one of these up I know I’m going to get an amazing mix of cedar, light spices and some fruity sweetness. These are available just about everywhere so if you’ve been skipping them over recently cause they aren’t all new and trendy, I think it’s time to re-visit this stick!

La Aurora 107 Corona Review
La Aurora 107 Robusto Review

#5 – Padron 2000 & Londres

I think most everyone knows about this cigar and has probably had one at one time or another. I know I discovered these long ago when I first started smoking cigars. The prices on these are right in the sweet spot of most consumers and they are very widely available. The whole line is very good but I always tend towards the 2000 and Londres. Both the Maduro’s and Naturals seem to be pretty similar in the flavor department and you can expect to find lots of coffee and cocoa making this one tasty cigar!

Padron 2000 Review

#4 – Illusione 888 & 88

I couldn’t decide on which one of these I enjoy more so I decided to group them together since they are pretty similar in my eyes. The ~88~ and ~888~ are staples in my humidor. I know the prices are a bit high but the flavors and construction on these definitely make them worth my while. When you spark up one of these you can expect to find lots of earthy and cedar notes, but the two real winners here for me are the tarty sweet notes near the end and the amazing smooth creamy retrohale that they offer. If you haven’t tried one of these yet, make sure to pick some up! I added the link to our “~888~ Slam” here, the flavors were very similar to the regular ~888~ but I liked the vitola a little more just because it was more comfortable to hold, but both are winners.

Illusione ~88~ Review
Illusione ~888~ Slam Review

#3 – Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial

The first time I had one of these it was sent to me by Tony and I was just blown away by the awesome flavors and construction. I mean who can complain, almost all the cigars out of the My Father factory are top notch. What really caught my attention and keeps me smoking these is the price they come in. For a premium cigar with some awesome flavors and constuctio, the price is amazing. They are also very widely available which can’t be said for all the My Father products. If you like a solid medium bodied stick with awesome flavors such as spice, cedar, espresso and cocoa, you will love this stick.

Jamie Garcia Reserva Especial Review

#2 – Montecristo No. 2 (Cuban)

I know, I know, this is not an easy one for most of our American friends to track down. But it constantly tops my list and many others as one of the best value for a premium cigar you can find. With the right connections, you can get these for under $8 per stick. They have tons of good flavors ranging from coffee to cedar to earthy to creamy, it’s just so good. They do benefit from a bit of time resting but are easily smokable fresh too, you just won’t get some of the more delicate flavors.

Montecristo No. 2 2010 Review
Montecristo No. 2 2008 Joint Review

#1 – Drew Estate Undercrown

If you’ve been keeping an eye on my twitter feed or the Facebook page, you would have seen quite a few of these pop up over the course of the last year. The meaty and balanced flavors of espresso and spices in the Undercrown just seem to hit the spot everytime. Add on some excellent construction and spot on consistency, and this is a winner. I’m also a fan of the T52 and No.9 but I’ve had a lot more luck tracking down the Undercrowns and their price is also much more digestible as a more frequent cigar. I also love the wrapper on this cigar, it’s so dark and has a ton of toothiness and roughness to it, definitely some eye candy in the cigar world. As I write this I realize I’m running low on them and need to order another box… lol

Drew Estate Undercrown Review

There are tons more great sticks I could go into that are easily available, these are just a few that I’ve been smoking or wanting to smoke this past year. And this list could change completely in the next 6 months so take it for what it is and enjoy. If you have a couple that are on your constant shopping list and have been heavy hitters this year, let me know in the comments!

The post Casas Fumando “Average Joe” Top 10 of 2012 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

2 Days before I tied the knot I had a great cigar gathering with about 10 friends. Not all of them are big on cigars but there were a few. So I pulled out some mild sticks for the newbies and kept some of the good sticks for those I knew would enjoy them. I happened to grab myself a Cohiba Behike 52 (Which Tony reviewed here) that I had been saving for just this occasion and damn was it ever good. I paired it with a super smooth scotch which I had also been saving, the Macallan Select Oak. I highly recommend both of these! To finish off the night I also enjoyed a Drew Estate Undercrown and a Montecristo No. 2 which are staples in my humidor and still darn good. But hard to compare to the Behike…

The wedding day was mostly a blur and flew by very quickly. I didn’t have time to sneak out for a cigar but I did make sure they were part of the day. I had ordered a bunch of cigars from our friend Paul Maldonado and gave them out to our guests. Each cigar had my wonderful wife’s creative touch as well with a nice ribbon and little label that said “Compliments of the new Mr. and Mrs. T”. The whole day and evening went wonderfully smooth and without any problems at all, a great day for sure!

Now for the fun part, the next morning at 7am we were on our way to the airport! I made sure to pack my travel humidor with a few sticks cause I didn’t want to get stuck without any cigars while I was away. Our first stop was the island of Antigua in the Caribbean. The island itself has some great scenery but apart from the cruiseship port there isn’t many shops that tourists would visit so we stuck to the resort for the most part. Now I’m very glad I brought my own cigars because they were selling Cuban’s for about 4x the retail price, which is even more than they would cost me in Canada!
But you can’t really complain when this is the view you have at your table every morning for breakfast!

So while I was there this is what I had from my Travel humidor. I didn’t pack any Cuban’s because we’d be hitting U.S. soil and I didn’t want to deal with a Customs issue. The first night in Antigua I celebrated with a Jaime Garcia Reserve Especial. I really love this cigar and it comes at such a great price, can’t go wrong with these.

I didn’t have a cigar every night simply because we were having fun doing other things but the resort was very open to letting you smoke pretty much anywhere on the grounds. So I also enjoyed the odd smaller cigar such as a couple Illusione ~mk~ sticks and some little Tatuaje Verocu 5’s that I happened to bring along. The night pictured below consisted of a Don Pepin Garcia Blue Label paired with some Nachos + Cheese and my staple drink for the trip, a Cuba Libre (a.k.a. Rum & Coke). And yes, I had it in a mug because I ran out of glasses in the room! lol

The next cigar I snuck in my travel humidor is one of my recent favorites, the Drew Estate Undercrown. Of course, I have myself some more Rum & Coke here, El Dorado seemed to be the standard of this resort.

That was it for the cigars I snapped pictures of at the resort. The next leg of the trip brought us to San Juan where we would be catching our cruiseship for a tour of the Caribbean. We didn’t have time to shop around San Juan when we got there as we had to head straight to the ship. At this point I was running low on cigars and starting to get worried! lol The first night while we were watching the ship disembark I squeezed in an Illusione ~88~ and I think I only had 1 cigar left now.

The first stop on our tour was the island of St. Thomas which is part of the U.S. Virgin Islands. This was a really nice island with lots of clean shops and friendly people, definitely a place we’d consider going back to for a longer stay. While my new wife went crazy in all the jewelry stores I kept my eyes peeled for cigars. There were a couple duty free shops that I ended up grabbing some cigars at but the prices were kinda high so I only grabbed a few. I picked up a couple Padron 2000’s that were a little over $8 each and some Arturo Fuente Chateau’s that were in the $10 range. Selection wasn’t that great on this island either…

I have a bunch more to tell but it seems this post is already getting pretty long so be on the look out for part 2 coming up later this week! Let us know if you guys enjoy this type of post and we could chat more about our adventures with cigars whenever we have them!

The post Why I was MIA – Part 1 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Garcia family is also involved in a variety of other cigar lines not under the My Father name.  Some examples include the Don Pepin Garcia line, the Jamie Garcia line, some Tatuaje cigars, the Ashton San Critobal line, El Rey De Los Habanos and many others.  He has also been the creator of a variety of house blended cigars for many different Brick & Mortar Cigar shops.  His son, Jaime Garcia, is just recently making a big splash in the cigar world with his original My Father cigar and the newer Jamie Garcia Reserva Especial.  Between these two gentlemen, there are a variety of great cigars attached to their name.  Aside from blending, the My Father Factory is also the home production facility of some other cigars such as the Nestor Miranda 1989 and the recently released Guillermo Leon line.

The My Father Le Bijou 1922 is blended by Don Pepin Garcia himself as a homage to his father.  The name “Le Bijou” means ‘The Jewel’ in French and the year 1922 is the year his father was born.  Don Pepin set out to make sure this was an excellent smoke worthy of his fathers name.  The wrapper used in this cigar is extremely rare and very difficult to grow.  The Pelo de Oro wrapper (commonly called Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro) is not common due to it’s sensitivity and has hardly ever been used for a large number of years.  It comes in asa lighter and creamier version of a traditional Oscuro.  Being a Nicaraguan Puro cigar, this Le Bijou 1922 is made completely of Nicaraguan tobacco.  Let’s see how this rare “Jewel” fares in today’s review.

Cigar: My Father Le Bijou 1922
Drink: Unibroue Maudite
Vitola: Toro (6 x 52)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: About $12
Burn Time: 1.75 hours

Construction:
• This cigar is instantly appealing to the eyes with it’s smooth oily appearance and a dark chocolate brown wrapper
• There are some visible medium sized veins but none that look threatening to the burning experience of this cigar
• It has a bit of give when squeezed slight but springs back quickly, there is also one spot near the head and one near the foot that is slightly softer
• The triple cap is very well applied, it’s clean and smooth and blends in extremely well
• The wrapper is very ornate and detailed, another eye appealing point on this fantastic looking cigar
• Cut was a little firm with my double bladed guillotine and produced a lot of flakes but still came out fairly clean

Burn:
• Toasting was fairly easy and even with my single flame culinary torch, the center was a little dark but glowed brightly after the first draw
• Some minor waving at the start but it has been razor sharp going into the half-way point here
• Staying lit effortlessly as well, not need to continuously draw to keep it going
• No issues right to the nub, the burn was razor sharp the whole way through

Smoke & Ash:
• Tons of smoke right from the initial draw
• A fair amount of resting smoke as well,  giving off what seems to be just a burning wood aroma
• The ash is nothing short of picture perfect, it’s clean round, no flaking and very light grey/almost white color
• Although it looks perfect it appears a little weak as the first ash fell off at around half an inch
• The second ash held on much longer, easily passing one inch
• The smoke machine did not let down, always a mouthful of smoke from each draw bringing with it all the great flavors

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper has a grassy aroma to it and is complimented by some spicy notes, perhaps just a touch of pepper
• The foot has a creamy cocoa and woodsy aroma, there is less spice here but still a touch of nutmeg can be detected
• Pre-light draw is very woodsy and earthy with some pepper and nutmeg spice in the mix
• Initial draws are mostly cedar mixed with a white pepper spice and a smooth creamy finish
• The retrohale has no bite despite the spicy notes I’m getting, it’s very smooth and has the same creamy finish
• As I progress I’m getting some nice espresso notes and the spice is slowly fading
• The espresso notes are balancing just perfectly with the creaminess and the cedar
• I can’t emphasize enough how smooth and balanced the cigar is as I apporach the halfway mark, the finish is just right, not even a touch of dryness.  I could smoke this easily without a beverage!
• Just passed the halfway mark the spiciness came back, specifically some more white pepper
• The cedar notes also came bursting out again leaving the espresso behind but the wonderful smooth creamy finish is still lingering
• The retrohale also developed a little bite and the finish has a lot more cedar than before
• The cigar started off with a mild/medium body but as I near the last two inches it’s definitely approaching a medium/full with a touch of cocoa appearing now and then throughout the whole time
• There was almost no harshness built up all the way to the nub, definitely a nub-worthy cigar

Final Thoughts:
This was a very enjoyable cigar.  The My Father Le Bijou 1922 had lots of interesting flavors and they changed up frequently keeping my palate constantly searching for the new notes.  This is definitely the type of cigar you want to sit down and pay attention to in order to get it’s full experience.  All factors considered I don’t really have anything I can complain about, from the pre-smoke visuals right down to the nub there was nothing I can say I didn’t enjoy.  The one gripe if any about this cigar will be the price, it rings in at over $11 and that may turn away some customers but I have to say it is a worthwhile investment.  It may not make it into your regular rotation for some people but it’s definitely worth having some around.  The construction, dimensionality, flavors and smoothness all make it a great experience.

Pairings:
The Unibroue brewery from Quebec, Canada is quickly making it’s way to the top of my favorite breweries list.  I’ve said this before but their brews never disappoint.  I’ve included the La Fin du Monde by Unbroue in a previous pairing for the Arturo Fuente Hemingway Short Story.  The standard bottle size comes adorned with a gold foil wrapper top and an odd label with a demon and some people paddling a canoe in a red sky.  The flavors are incredibly complex bringing a variety of hoppiuness, bitterness, fruitiness, and even a slight floral note.  It is uniquely refermented on a yeast base and clocks in at 8% alc./vol.  It’s definitely worth trying and although not the best pairing here I think it actually added a layer of interesting flavors to this already complex cigar.  It may come as no surprise here but I think a Port would have been the perfect pairing for the cedar, spice and creamy notes of the Le Bijou 1922.  Other good pairings would include red wine, scotch, coffee or a dark soda.

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The Good Stuff: The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial is the second cigar blended by the legendary Don Pepin Garcia’s son, Jaime Garcia (My Father being the first). The Reserva Especial is a blend consisting of two different Nicaraguan tobaccos. One grown by the Pepin family, the other grown by the well known Oliva Tobacco Company wrapped in my personal favorite wrapper, the Connecticut broadleaf.

The size I am doing a review of is the toro. You can easily order these from the great team over at Bonita Smokeshop, along with just about any other Pepin product.

Size: 6 x 54 – Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf – Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan – Body: Medium/Full

Prelight: The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial is a toothy little beast. The cigar is wrapped with a beautifully, very dark chocalatey brown. The wrapper gleams from the massive amount of oils from the foot, all the way to the rounded off, triple wrapped cap. The Reserva Especial is firm to the touch near the head of the cigar, but quite softer then most cigars movie down to the foot. There aren’t any real soft spots, but the softness of this cigar almost worries me. It does have a good weight to it though. There is only one, very small vein on the underside of the cigar. The band stays true to form with most of the my father cigars we see coming out of that factory. Its an off-white with a full brown, gold, and blue crest stating “Jaime Garcia” and “Reserva Especial”. The underside of the band simply states “My Father Cigars”. The wrapper gives off a very sweet, chocolate and mocha type aroma where as the foot of this cigar has a more pronounced oat and tobacco scent with cocoa undertones. The cigar was clipped with ease by my Cuban Crafters Perfecto double blade cutter. The cold draw was very firm with rich tobacco, cocoa, and lots spice.

First Smoke: As I have come to expect from most cigars produced in the My Father factory the Reserva Especial starts off with a boom of spice and pepper. This initial hit pairs seamlessly with the sharp spice of the New Belgium Biere De Mars that I have decided to pair this cigar with. Once the pepper begins to wear off, subtle notes of cocoa and coffee become present over stronger notes of sweet tobacco, leather, and wood. The burnline is razor sharp but has developed a bit of a wave pattern early into the cigar. The draw is very loose, and produces a very thick, cedar scented cloud of smoke. The Reserva Especial gives off little to no stationary smoke, and what little bit of smoke that does is escape is pleasantly scented with a strong cedar aroma as well. The ash is a very light grey and very tightly packed in most places. The ash held tight for about an inch and a half before falling.

Halfway There: The pepper introduction to this cigar was just that, and is not longer present. The dominating flavor is by far the woodsy, grassy flavor that began as just an afterthought in the first third backed by the sweet tobacco, and a strong, almost espresso coffee. There retrohale on this cigar is to die for. Almost pure cedar, and in credibly smooth. I’m impressed thus far with how just perfectly smooth this cigar is. The burnline did a heck of a job fixing itself, and has burned perfectly and still razor sharp all the way through the second third. Up until this point I still have yet to feel any signs of nicotine.

Finish: What a smooth finish, and I can’t stress that enough. This cigar is definitely @KightRid acceptable with no signs what so ever of nicotine. The Reserva Especial finished off very clean and smooth with the dominant flavor still being wood and grass, backed up by cocoa and lots of strong coffee notes. The burn went a little wavy into the final third, but cleaned itself up and there was no need for any types of relights or touch ups. The pepper did make a slight come back deep within the last inch or so, but it was more of just a reminder of how this cigar started out. All in all it took only about an hour and a half to take down this Toro sized cigar.

Overview: Overall I was VERY impressed with this cigar. I am a Pepin love through and through and this cigar didn’t fail in any way shape or form. The woodsy, sweet, soft cocoa and coffee flavors preformed brilliantly with one another. Near perfect burn, medium body, and great aftertaste. And with the affordable price point? You really couldn’t ask for me. Perfect for a beginner cigar smoker, and everyday cigar for the aficionado, This cigar will be in my regular rotation from this point forward. Box worth by far.

Pairing: The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial was paired with one of my favorites, New Belgium’s Lips of Faith Series Biere De Mars. New Belgium has a knack for coming up with some of the best traditional brews, and as of late some of the better non traditional. They save these brews for the Lips of Faith collection. Very sought after, and VERY hard to come by these brews are more expensive to produce, and require a more skillful team making them so rare. The Biere de Mars I drank was picked up on my latest trip to Denver Colorado. I ventured north to the New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins and picked up a few beers to take back with me.

Biere De Mars is a Celestial collision of orange – hued ale, citrusy lemon verbena, and unidentified flying brettanomyces.

I don’t know exactly what that means, but its good stuff. 6.2% citrus, bready, spicy beer. It was just an absolute perfect match for this cigar. I would recommend something of the sort for pairing, or even a hefty stout, iced tea or apple juice. Something citrusy, and sweet.

New Belgium - Lips of Faith - Biere De Mars - Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial

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